Job Description

Research Fellow Position

The Center for Survivor Agency and Justice (CSAJ) is a national organization dedicated to enhancing advocacy for survivors of intimate partner violence. CSAJ develops and promotes advocacy approaches that remove systemic barriers, enhance organizational responses, and improve professional practices to meet the self-defined needs of domestic and sexual violence survivors. We steer this towards our vision: a world where all people have equal access to physical safety, economic security, and human dignity.

The Research Fellow will contribute to CSAJ by supporting (or steering) one or many research or research translation projects, including conducting literature reviews, piloting and/or conducting assessment and survey tools, developing creative and dynamic methods to make research accessible and applicable to the field, quantitative and qualitative data analysis and report writing, and supporting CSAJ's internal evaluation work. See a detailed list of projects/activities below.

We encourage public health, social work, public policy and other students to use this position to fulfill practicum or fieldwork requirements. Project opportunities listed below are organized by time-commitment: 2 2.5 month practicum projects, 6-9 month projects (that could fulfill practicum as well as thesis and/or other course requirements, or for those interested in a longer fellowship experience).

CSAJ is composed of a small team of dedicated advocates in the legal, social work, and academic fields who are wholly committed to creative vision, open communication, and justice-minded social change work. While CSAJ interns are able to enjoy the flexibility and convenience of telecommuting, they can also participate in weekly staff meetings with the organization's leadership, take part in all of CSAJ's trainings, and receive supervision and support from the Board of Directors as needed.

Fellows will join a cadre of CSAJ interns and fellows, which includes receiving a join orientation training, project/role planning, weekly "Intern Guild" meetings, engaging in special project with CSAJ staff or other interns, and opportunities to demonstrate your work and experience through "Project Expos." We strive to create a vibrant team culture amongst our interns, even while virtual and working on distinct projects.

The Practicum student will be under the direct supervision of CSAJ's Director of Research & Programs, located in New York, NY. In person and virtual meetings will be scheduled to provide direction and feedback. Work is conducted remotely/virtually, with opportunities for in person supervision if located in New York City.

CSAJ Research Fellows can contribute to one or more of the projects below, based on interest and availability. We also welcome unique proposals for research that advances racial and economic equity for survivors.

Research Translation (these projects require skill or interest in communications/design, visualization software (i.e. Tableau), as well as research and data analysis) 2/2.5 month commitments

• Equity Maps / Infographics: The domestic/sexual violence advocacy field is expert at utilizing story/narrative to communicate needs to local-national policy and decision makers. However, quantitative data is also needed to demonstrate the full costs of safety. CSAJ has developed an "equity dashboard" that synthesizes national datasets across areas of violence, poverty, and social inequality, resulting in a tool that helps visualize the equity landscape of all 50 states. You'll help update and refine this data dashboard and create maps or other infographics for all 50 states that illustrate key data points to equip advocates and programs with data to use in systems or policy advocacy efforts.

Evaluation of Survivor Centered Economic Advocacy Trainings

• Access to Justice E-Course, Evaluation: 2/2.5months - Refine an evaluation plan comparing advocates who completed a self-guided, online eCourse vs. those who participated in a learning cohort. Conduct basic qual/quant data analyses and present findings to CSAJ and core partners. Findings will be used to enhance our Learning Cohorts and general findings will be shared publicly as promising-practices and field reports.

Needs Assessments & Advocacy Surveys

• State/National Needs Assessments: 2/2.5 months - CSAJ works with local programs and state initiatives to enhance organizational approaches and partnerships for survivors' economic justice. Help conduct analysis for one state needs assessment and present findings to CSAJ and state training specialists. CSAJ is also beginning to conduct semi-regular national needs assessments of the field and our networks - help create assessment plans and conduct NAs from start to finish.
• Advocacy Surveys/Research:2/2.5 - CSAJ works with broad networks to advocacy on critical state and national policy issues. Help plan and conduct advocacy surveys and other research to produce data that directly informs our advocacy and messaging.

Any project can contribute to students' thesis/capstone and can result in writing research articles for submission to peer reviewed journals, submitting to and/or presenting at conferences, and publishing other white papers and practice-based materials.

Qualifications:

• Masters of Public Health, Public Policy, Social Work, Law, or students in similar discipline with competencies in social science research, legal and policy issues, program/intervention planning, evaluation, and social determinants of health framework (intersectional and root-cause).
• Ability to work independently and self-start
• Strong organizational skills including: ability to develop work plan, self-assign and adhere to deadlines, communicate progress, and ask questions/engage in discussion
• Strong research and analytic skills including: internet research, research methods, participatory and equitable methodology, qualitative and quantitative research planning and analysis, stakeholder engagement and discussions, writing academic and practice-based reports, etc.
• Familiarity with legal and/or policy work strongly preferred
• Excellent writing skills for lay and professional audiences
• Ability to organize, coordinate, and implement a collaborative project, involving multiple contributors, from start to finish
• Demonstrated commitment to social justice, health disparities or inequality, within a public health framework
• Foreign language proficiency a plus
• Experience with advocating for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault a plus
• Experience with anti-poverty and economic justice policy or direct advocacy a plus

To Apply

Please click the "Apply for this Job" button to complete the application packet. You'll be asked to submit a cover letter, your resume, and a relevant writing/work sample. Once submitted you'll receive a confirmation email letting you know we have received your application.

If you have any questions or trouble submitting the application packet, please contact us at careers@csaj.org. However, due to the number of applications we receive, we may only be able to respond to those applicants selected for interview.

Applications will be reviewed and candidates interviewed on a rolling basis, with priority given to those submitted by April 14th. The final deadline for applications is April 30. At this time, CSAJ Research Fellowships are unpaid, therefore we encourage application from students who can obtain credit, seek school funding, or apply the experience to practicum or other graduation requirements. CSAJ will support any administrative work needed to obtain credit or jointly pursue funding/scholarships to enable students to apply. Please reach out if this is of interest so we can accommodate your timeline. We also offer part and full-time internships and design intern projects and experiences that match each person's schedule and availability, especially for those who need to work or have other responsibilities.

We encourage people of color, indigenous people, LGBTQ+ individuals, and people with disabilities to apply.

Job Tags

Similar Jobs